In recent years, the tasks of controlling an analyzing apparatus as well as analyzing data obtained as a result of an analysis have been conducted using a controlling and analyzing software program which runs on a commonly used computer. Main users of such software products are analysis operators who actually use analyzing devices.
Users are not always proficient in the operation of such software. Therefore, even a software program which seems to be equipped with a satisfactory set of functions from the viewpoint of the developer may afterwards turn out to be in need of additional functions (e.g. buttons, descriptions or other GUI elements). Furthermore, although the contents of the errors that may possibly occur can to some extent be grasped in the development phase, it may be impossible for the developer to prepare a sufficient amount of support information on the measures to be taken when an error has occurred. Indeed, users cause errors under various situations. If an error has occurred in an unexpected situation for the developer, it may be difficult for users to find an appropriate recovery method from the descriptions prepared before the selling of the product. In this way, it is often the case that the addition of a function or support information is desired after the software is offered to users as the product.
In light of such a situation, the present inventor has conceived the idea of installing an operation-assisting program apart from a main software program on a computer, where the operation-assisting program is configured to detect a specific image displayed by the main software and then display additional GUI elements or similar pieces of information.
There are also other conventional techniques for offering some forms of assistance to user operations by detecting an image displayed on a screen. For example, Non Patent Literature 1 discloses a technique including the steps of searching the screen for an image which matches with an image previously registered by a user and automatically performing a click operation in the located image. Non Patent Literature 2 also discloses a similar technique, which is further capable of detecting similar images based on the pattern recognition.